Everything He Needs
Ethan poured the milk slowly so that his corn flakes (薄片,小碎片) rose above the rim (边缘) of the bowl, just like Nick’s. Mom didn’t fuss (唠叨) about it. Instead, she reached over and patted Nick’s hand. “It’s our last breakfast together before you start college,” she said.
“What will you eat for breakfast at college, Nick?” Ethan asked his big brother.
“I don’t know.” Nick hugged the corn flakes box. “I’d better take this.”
Mom smiled. “Nick is teasing. He’ ll have everything he needs at college.”
“Not everything.” Nick pointed at Ethan. “I won’t have my little brother!”
Mom looked at her watch. “Oops. We need to get going, boys.”
In the car, Ethan shared the backseat with Nick’s suitcases. “I wish I could go to the airport with you,” he said. But it was class photo day.
When they arrived at Ethan’s school, Nick reached over the seat and hugged Ethan goodbye. “Smile big for the camera,” Nick said.
“Good luck at college!” said Ethan. He got out of the car and waved at Nick until the car turned the corner.
Ethan missed seeing his brother at breakfast every day. Sometimes Nick sent photos. One was of him and his friends. They were all splattered (溅泼) with mud from playing soccer.
Mom said, “I hope he has figured out how to do laundry with detergent (洗涤剂).”
Nick sent another photo of himself in the library with a tall pile of books.
Mom said, “I hope Nick is finding time to get enough sleep.”
Ethan stared at the photo. Nick was smiling, but he looked tired. Maybe it was hard to get enough sleep at college.
A couple of months later, Mom said, “I bought plane tickets so we can visit Nick for his birthday.”
注意：1. 续写词数应为 150 左右；2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
Ethan pulled out his backpack, thinking that he should take something his brother may need.
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Hearing Mom’s words, he cleared his backpack of the things he had just collected.
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After Sri Pisharody’s father died, her mother moved to the U. S. to be near her family. But a few things needed to be finalized back home. So Pisharody, her young daughter, and her mother flew to India together. During the long flight, Pisharody laid out some ground rules for her daughter.
“In India, it’s crowded. You have to stick with me and never trust the police officers or the auto rickshaw (黄包车)drivers because everybody wants a bribe (贿 赂)and they’ll try to cheat you,“ Pisharody recalled telling her daughter.
Pisharody had packed all of their passports, documents and other valuable items in a small briefcase. Upon landing, they hailed a rickshaw to the train station. When the driver dropped them off, Pisharody paid him, and then she turned around to make sure her daughter and mother were close by.
“Before I knew it, the auto rickshaw driver drove away with our briefcase that had my passport, our documents, our cash, everything in it,” Pisharody said. ”My heart sank. I started trembling. I didn’t know what to do. ” Her mother, who was 70 at the time, quickly sprang into action and headed to the police station, leaving Pisharody and her daughter at the train station.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
While standing on the front steps, a group of auto rickshaw drivers approached them and asked what was wrong.
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When she looked in the rickshaw, the briefcase was exactly where she had left it.
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As the bell was about to ring, our teacher announced a special assignment for next Monday: to share our gratitude for someone instead of giving a daily report. Hearing this, anxiety crawled over my body as the last thing I would do was speaking in front of the entire class! I couldn’t help complaining to my best friend Jenny.
“You are the chief violinist in our school orchestra, aren’t you?” she said. “So what’s the point of being afraid of speaking to a few our own classmates since you can handle acting in front of a large audience?”
Her point made sense, but being in a performance meant being part of a team. I shook my head. Besides, there were so many people I was grateful to, and choosing just one seemed difficult. Even if I could pick someone, I wouldn’t know how to say thank you. And even if I figured out what to say, I was sure I’d stumble(结巴地说) on my words when speaking aloud! Standing there, with everyone’s eyes on me, I would feel the spot light was wholly on me, and there would be no place for me to hide! “Oh no!” I covered my face with my hands and said, “I can’t do it, just can’t!” Real friends, the ones who know you well, don’t just do exactly what you ask. Jenny, always supportive and helpful, wrote something on a piece of paper and gently removed my hands from my face. She had drawn a cute cat with the word “CALM” written below it.
“Nice meeting you; I am the ‘everything will be fine’ cat,” Jenny laughed and sounded exactly like a cat. Pretending to listen to the cat, she asked, “Well, kitty, you think my friend should come to my house tomorrow, so we can prepare our speeches together I laughed out loud and relaxed a lot. I have to say Jenny was there for me, always!”
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
The next day, I went to Jenny’s house.
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Before the speech, however, I changed my mind and wrote “Jenny” on the blackboard.
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After 22 years of marriage, I have discovered the secret to keep love alive in my relationship with my wife, Peggy. I started dating with another woman.
It was Peggy’s idea. One day she said to me, “Life is too short, you need to spend time with the people you love. You probably won’t believe me, but I know you love her and I think that if the two of you spend more time together, it will make us closer.”
The “other” woman my wife was encouraging me to date is my mother, a 72-year-old widow who has lived alone since my father died 20 years ago. Right after his death, I moved 2, 500 miles away to California and started my own life and career. When I moved back near my hometown six years ago, I promised myself that I would spend more time with Mom. But with the demands of my job and three kids, I never got around to seeing her much beyond family get-togethers and holidays.
Mom was surprised when I called and suggested the two of us go out to dinner.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“I thought it would be nice to spend some time with you,” I said. “Just the two of us.”
“I would like that a lot,” she said.
When I pulled into her driveway, she was waiting by the door with her coat on. Her hair was curled, and she was smiling. “I told my friends I was going out with my son, and they were all impressed. They can’t wait to hear about our evening,” Mom said.
注意：
1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右;
2. 续写部分分为两段, 每段的开头语已为你写好：
Para 1: Minutes later, we arrived at a restaurant in the neighborhood.
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Para 2:“How was your date?” Peggy asked when I got home.
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注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I was backpacking in Panama over Christmas in 2018, and planned to climb Volcán Barú. It is one of the only places on earth from where you can see the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans at the same time.
I set off before sunrise. It was a bit cold, so I had pulled on leggings under my trousers. I’ve always felt safe travelling as a solo (单独) woman. I love the freedom. When I got to the base at 7 am, the ranger (护林员) was unwilling to let me go alone, but relented (缓和) because an American couple were behind me.
The first part of the climb was beautiful. I walked for an hour and had reached a fair height. The views were impressive, so I stopped to take a photograph. Suddenly I heard violent barking behind me.
I turned and saw two dogs running aggressively towards me. I could see their teeth looked sharp, and they looked angry. There was nowhere for me to run. I tried to keep calm, but my heart was racing. They stopped a dozen feet from where I stood and kept barking. I knew they could move fast, so I didn’t want to try to outrun them.
I kept walking, saying, “Good dog, calm down,” as evenly as possible. But I was terrified. Then one dashed up and sunk his teeth into my leg below the knee. I was shocked. He held on for a few seconds. The pain took my breath away as I felt his fangs (犬牙) in my flesh. I considered bending down to get a rock to fight him off, but was nervous in case he went for my neck or the other one launched at me.
I tried to keep walking, and he finally let go. Then he was behind me, growling (嗥叫). I kept going, my body shaking, until after about 15 minutes I was out of their sight.
When I thought it was safe, I stopped.
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A pickup truck appeared, driven by the ranger.
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What is a family? Why does it matter? What does it teach us that we can’t learn on our own? These questions seem especially relevant in the holiday season when it is often our tradition to gather as families and celebrate together.
I don’t recall getting many gifts from them. I remember the sense of belonging, of being part of something that assured me I was loved and not alone.
I delighted in the laughing, playing and fighting with my crazy cousins.I watched my granddad and uncles sit on the porch , rain or shine, smoking and joking, arguing about politics and trying to solve the problems of the world.I listened to my grandmother, mother and aunts stir pots on the stove and talk about their lives, hopes, dreams and disappointments, and gossip about any sister who failed to show up.The food was always plentiful and delicious. But for me, the food was never the highlight. The highlight was simply being together.
A family should be always separated？
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When it comes to“together”, it occurred to me that
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My daughter and I were fans of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, an educational children’s television series that was created and hosted by Fred Rogers, more commonly known as Mister Rogers.
Around my daughter’s second birthday, I had a Mister Rogers-inspired idea. Why not invite one key person in my daughter’s world to dinner each month? The local children’s librarian could visit one evening, and perhaps the borough mayor (区长) could drop by a few weeks later.
But I wanted to start at the top.
“Let’s invite Mister Rogers himself, ” I said to my wife. “After all, he lives just a few neighborhoods away. I bet he’d come.”
She looked at me as if I wanted to invite the President. “You really think Mister Rogers would come to our house for dinner? Fat chance.”
Undeterred (不气馁的), I sent a letter to Mister Rogers that fall, telling him of my newfound delight in his show and my idea for inviting neighborhood people over to talk about their lives, and asking him and Mrs. Rogers to be our guests.
I told my daughter about the letter. Her eyes glistened (发光). “Mister Rogers coming? Really, Daddy?”
One month later, no reply. My daughter hadn’t forgotten and periodically asked when Mister Rogers would be visiting. I always told her that he hadn’t called yet and that it was a good opportunity to learn about patience.
Two months later, no response. At the three-month mark, my wife simply rolled her eyes when I raised the topic. I was beginning to lose optimism. Mister Rogers had let me down.
Sadly, Mister Rogers passed away in late February of the following year. I was unaware of his illness and now understood why our invitation had gone unanswered. Mister Rogers would not be coming to dinner after all. Yet, even after his passing, Mister Rogers gave us a far greater gift than I ever could have imagined.
注意：1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
A week later, I was surprised to find a letter in our mailbox from Mister Rogers.
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The letter is a treasured gift and his kind words touched my life and my daughter.
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Wide awake, I sat up in bed before dawn. I'd had another dream about Jennifer, my middle child. She's 38 now. Usually in my dreams she's still a little shy girl.
Jennifer had been five years old and her older sister seven, when the twins were born. Everything changed. The boys demanded much of my time and energy, so I hardly had any left for their older sisters. Sweet, quiet Jennifer, sandwiched between the others, required almost nothing from me. Eventually Jennifer had her own children and lived about an hour and a half away. But it seemed as though she were worlds away.
I often dreamed about her. In this one she was a grown woman and mixed in with a crowd. I waved hard, “Jennifer! I'm over here!” But she didn't notice me.
I longed to hear my daughter's voice and called, “Hey, I had a dream about you.” Then Jennifer surprised me. “I dreamed about you too. But it was terrible. I won't even tell you.”
“But I am eager to hear.”
Her words came out without thinking, “We were walking through a vegetable garden. A farmer shouted that I'd stepped on one of his tomatoes and asked for 43 cents. I didn't have any money and turned to you. You said no. I begged. I woke up in tears.”
The pain in her voice almost cut my breath off. “There were so many things I should have done for you. I overlooked you. You seemed so competent and independent. I forgot you were just a child.”
There was silence on her end of the line. The communication seemed broken again. I called an old friend and told her about Jennifer's dream and our awkward attempt to connect. “Your relationship probably broke down over a lot of little things,” she said.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
I realized what I should do to mend our relationship.
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The next day, my daughter called me excitedly.
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My mom is really a good cook （I bet all of us have this same claims） and she never really taught me how to cook.She enjoys experimenting various dishes and occasionally she will ask for my help to grind chili，onions or garlic.Basically all simple chores.I sometimes look at how she prepares the dishes and became more observant over the years.Every day she will buy meat or vegetables from a local market near us and just store it in the fridge to be cook later for dinner.She works for the government and she is not available to cook lunch.Every day after coming back from school I would always open the refrigerator and see what she bought and I can always tell what will be for dinner that night.If I see chicken，potatoes and shredded coconut，I would be very excited because I know she will make my favorite dish – Chicken Curry.
My parents do okay but we are by no means wealthy.I think we are comfortable in our daily basic needs but we definitely have no room for luxuries.But when it comes to our dinner，my mom will always make 3 dishes for dinner without failure.It’s almost like eating in a restaurant.I have to admit I was spoiled by my mom when it comes to my eating habits and have high expectations when eating somewhere else.
One day my mom came back from work in the office and she was really in bad mood.She was complaining about how untidy we are and we （my siblings） never contributed in the household chores.To me that is not a fair statement as my elder brother and I took turns to wash the dishes.I was also given the privileged of ironing my mom and dad’s office attire each week.I was 14 at that time and being a boy，I have no intention of letting my friends know.Most of my friends have a maid to do all this but my parents simply couldn’t afford one.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答.
Back to the scenario（情形） where my mom was in bad mood and complaining about our lack of involvement with the chores.
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I tried my best to remember what the taste were like if my mom were to cook it.
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